Jessica Hughes Art

24 MSU Denver

[christyto4d-beyond]

Performance Art: “Making America Great”

“Making America Great” is meant to be a commentary on COVID and quarantine in the USA. From the beginning, the current administration (with fervent support from its base) has downplayed the reality and significance of what is now a pandemic. From selling stockpiles of PPE to other countries to undermining state efforts to obtain PPE to refusing to wear a mask himself, President Trump has consistently acted in a way to secure his own re-election over the safety of his constituents. Relatedly, while people have been trapped at home under quarantine, money has continued to be poured into the border wall. Trump’s base has followed his lead and, like the president, put their own interests over the health and safety of the country as a whole. As a whole, I intended this piece to be a reflection of the selfishness, waste, isolation, division, and even nonchalant brutality of current times. This was originally performed live on Facebook. This recording was edited for time and was flipped as it was originally recorded as a mirror image.

[jessicahughesart]

This was a really bold statement and I think you did an excellent job, I understood your point before I even read your statement. Because I like to go into the critiques without reading the statements first, I was a little confused when the MAGA hat came out but after reading the statement I understood the choice. It was really hard to watch you throw away all those gloves and things, and if that was intentional you succeeded.

[evie26blog]

Performance Art Project: A Family that Cooks Together, Stays Together

I decided to focus my performance art project around something that I find extremely important. After having my daughter, I realized that my husband and I never ate at the table as a family like I had when I was growing up. I started wondering when and why I stopping the tradition of preparing and eating a meal as a family. Growing up, I always helped my parents cook and it provided a unique time of the day where we could connect as a family. I believe that this time together is so important and it gives kids the opportunity to learn and be creative, while at the same time it reinforces the family bond. By the time my daughter was a year old, we decided to make a habit out of cooking together and always eating as a family. I filmed my family preparing a pot roast that was to be cooked throughout the day, this is why my daughter is in her jammies and looks pretty disheveled. She loves to play with ingredients by tasting and smelling them, she also loves adding things to the pot (which she graciously shows in the last few seconds of the video). I contemplated several times making a different video because I wasn’t totally in love with the way that this one turned out. Ultimately, I decided to stick with this one because it was a perfect capture of what cooking is like with my family. There are a lot of things going on at once and it may seem chaotic but it means the world to me that I can share something I love with my family.

[jessicahughesart]

I love your sweet video and your sweet family, it definitely gives a warm feeling. I think to make it seem more “performance” maybe you could have tried teaching (as much as you could) your daughter to cook the meal, it would have been fun and interesting to watch that dynamic and watch the passing of tradition.

[hollysherman4d-deactivated20220]

Performance Art Piece

This performance piece is about self-love. The concept of looking into the mirror is heavily associated with narcissism and an over inflated ego, but looking at yourself with love and compassion doesn’t have to be like that. In this project, I wanted to recreated the perception of how I personally look into the mirror. It has been a long journey to reach a point in my life where I have been able to reflect on myself and love myself. I found this performance piece very emotional. I have consistently had toxic relationships with mirrors throughout my entire life. I always looked for the flaws in myself and my body when looking into mirrors. I this performance, I looked into my own eyes in the mirror for 30 minutes straight and repeated the mantra, “you are love, you are light”. I found this experience to be very emotional to me, and I actually ended up crying at points. Sometimes it is hard to practice self-care and take time to sit still and just be with yourself, but I think it is so necessary to our mental health and wellbeing. My drive as an artist is to create work that makes an impact, on myself or others. I think with this piece, I definitely had a wonderful experience recreating my relationship with my reflection and digging deeper into the negative roots of looking into myself and changing them.

[jessicahughesart]

I really like this idea for your performance art piece. There are a few things I think could make it more successful, first, a bigger mirror might shift the viewer's focus, it's just easier to look at you vs the mirror you because of the size. Maybe a bathroom mirror or something, although, this spot definitely looks more comfortable. I also would have loved to hear the mantra!

[nathandmsudesign-blog]

Performance Art Project

I Hate To Say It But I Do Need Saving

With this performance I wanted to highlight what it’s like to carry all of the pressures and burdens of life: the tasks and goals and hardships and responsibilities we pick up over time and how it can seem like too much to bear sometimes. I wanted to convey that sense of burden and the feeling of being overwhelmed. Some of the items I pick up symbolize very really things like my pride flag and my school bag. Other things are less clear and more open for interpretation like the clothes and travel gear and camera equipment. Most importantly, I want the stress to be felt as my hands get over full. While its something I relate to I feel like many around me go through the same thing as well even if we don’t share our struggles or talk about it openly with one another. This was an important sentiment to explore for me personally and it kind of reflects my current reality. It was a unique experience being in front of the camera like that and there were stresses for me as I kept dropping things and having to rearrange them in my arms and hopefully that helps to reiterate my theme.

[nathandmsudesign-blog]

Pushing this back to the top of my feed.

[jessicahughesart]

I really like this “emotional baggage” metaphor, I also think it looks like how I feel in the morning on my way to work or school or whatever making sure I have everything in my arms ready to go. I like the pride flag because I don’t think many people think that we have to “carry” that around with us all the time which emphasizes the emotional baggage metaphor I mentioned. It's interesting, this reminded me that I almost feel weird walking out of the house with nothing in my hands and I think I would feel equally as weird walking around with nothing in my mind. I think what would have made this piece a little more successful would be watching you try to carry all that stuff just walking down the street or something!

[valeriaqb]

Performance Art Project- El Sebucan

This project has been my favorite. I got to explore my roots and connect with my culture while researching and performing. This dance is called “El Sebucan” and it is named after a traditional tool used by indigenous tribes in Venezuela and other parts of the Caribbean to extract cyanide from bitter cassava, which is how casaba (thin flatbread.) This dance is part of my ancestors and blood, and so I thought that recreating it in my own way would be itself a piece of art. I want the audience to be intrigued by the dance and to wonder what it means. The choreography resembles the techniques used in the sebucan; the interwoven of the ribbons is similar to the braids of fibers in the actual tool.  The colors of the ribbons are intentional as well, they represent the colors of the Venezuelan flag.

I wanted to show a part of my culture while challenging myself a little bit since this dance is supposed to be performed by several people. Re-connecting with my culture has been a goal of mine for the past months since I have realized I am losing touch about my region, South America. It has African, indigenous, and European influences, which represents the rich and diverse blood that runs through my veins.

[valeriaqb]

For critiques

[jessicahughesart]

Getting in touch with your roots is a great concept for this project, many people connect with their ancestors through art and I think that could be a very successful endeavor for you. I like that you placed so much intention in every element of the dance and tools that you used. My only criticism is that I wish maybe it had some more energy, or if you could have gotten others to participate with you so we could really get a feel for what it's supposed to look like!

[thekellyangryberger-deactivated]

Artists have attachments- many are drawn to garbage and the discards of others. I include myself in this group of people. I also tend to hang on to my own work. As I was scanning paintings from the last two years (one of those projects I finally have time for) I spiraled through memories of making each work, and the places that inspired them. Much of my painting work was made during a year-long period of travel in Asia and South America. For the first time, really ever, I spent time with this massive body of work and sorted it. Filed it. Organized it. Tossed the ones that I didn’t need, or didn’t seem worth saving for reuse. I scanned as much as I could stand to scan- and now these images exist in the DIGITAL WORLD! These paintings have spent the last year in a drawer and finally, they can see the light. 

While working through these memories it occurred to me that I had lost them until that moment I hadn’t any more. I’m not sure if that even makes sense. But what if I could edit out bad memories? Summon them to the surface like the boot reeled in on a fishing trip. Paint them. Shred them. I will read into the camera a few details of these memories before simply letting them go. I think we all owe it to ourselves to let go of shame- something I would say to someone else but have never allowed myself to do. 

As a self-critique, I do narrate this project through the video. I have a hard time with stopping myself from talking.

[jessicahughesart]

I’d like to start with a couple of personal things: 1. I also grew up in that area and have distant vague memories of that puppy store and I can assure you that puppy was probably stoked to have been accidentally dropped out of its dirty crowded cage and that lady was probably way meaner to those dogs than a little girl who accidentally lost her grip. (I also have some great stories about that red lobster) 2. Uh yeah, if an unmarked car sneaks up behind you to ask you what you’re doing/drinking I think most women’s first instinct is oh they're gonna kidnap and rape me so there is nothing wrong with pointing that out! lol 

I really like your idea for this project it came off so personal like I was just sitting with you talking about life. It was hard to watch you shred those paintings, I’m sentimental and hold onto my doodles and things for years, but the symbolism behind shredding them was really wonderful. My criticism is that its too short! I was really enjoying the stories and was bummed when they came to an end.

[mirandapanda415-deactivated2020]

The Pain No One Sees

https://youtu.be/YikTRKAXdV0

Chronic pain. I have been living with it for twelve years now, and I wouldn’t wish this on anyone. It is debilitating, scary, angering, anxiety-provoking, and depressing, just to name a few.  In my piece, the X’s on my body represent areas of chronic pain, and as time goes on, the intensity gets worse, which is the type of chronic pain I have suffered through and am still suffering through. Most chronic pain is invisible to many people, so my intention with my performance art piece is to bring awareness to the pain no one can see. Since chronic pain is long-lasting and is an effect from many diseases, I wanted to also represent the estimated 50 million people in the United States alone who suffer from chronic pain along with me. Even though so many people suffer from it, I don’t think chronic pain alone gets enough awareness, so I hope my performance can do just that.

P.S. This was VERY out of my comfort zone y’all but I did my best :)

[jessicahughesart]

I think you nailed your performance, without reading your statement I understood the X’s were placed to represent the pain and the increasing intensity drove that home as well. Taking something invisible and giving it visible qualities is a great example of what performance art sets out to do and I only wish the performance were a little bit longer or maybe that the intensity grew just a tad bit longer. Great job!

[kathemediina]

Spinning Out

Dancer and Ballerinas have techniques thanks to that they do not get dizzy when they are spinning out also with time and practice their brain adapt and also, they become resistant. I am not a dancer and I do not know the techniques and for this performance I put my self in this challenge. Endurance is what I select because most of the time we put ourselves in a comfort zone and is good to take challenges and see how far we can go and that is the main idea with this performance because knowing that we can learn techniques or just practice everyday sometimes is better to see if we can make it in our own. Also in the performance I want to show a progressive way of how is so easy to start and resist and then just get some more and more and how the body, mind (off balance) and emotion also can change.

[jessicahughesart]

I think there is a lot of symbolism in words like “dizzy” and “spinning out” which you mentioned at the end of your artist statement. I would have really liked to see you really push yourself close to the edge to emphasize that symbolism, of course I know that's not easy and I don’t know your personal limitations I just think faster/more spinning would really drive home the point. Overall, I think the idea is great and it's definitely a good example of endurance.

[guaminator]

Performance Art Project - “Head in the Clouds”

I personally don’t find myself with my head in the clouds at the best of times. It’s important to me to stay grounded and focused. But, in times like these, it’s difficult not to let my mind wander off. The uncertainty makes it easy to worry or stress about a lot of different things. For this piece I laid back to stare up at the clouds and just immerse myself in the moment. The ambient noises of my neighborhood snapping me out of my thoughts every so often. I wanted the mirror to show not only what I was seeing, but its positioning related to my head being an on the nose nod to the title of this piece and common phrase. The framing was important to me, splitting with half ground and half sky. Symbolizing where my head was at mentally while resting there physically as well. With everything going on in the world today it’s easy to get overwhelmed, I wanted to capture a moment of just taking a step back and escaping for a while. I debated on making it a time-lapse but decided against it at the end, the ambiance felt more immersive to me. 

[jessicahughesart]

I’m a little sad you decided against a time-lapse! Watching the clouds move by quickly in a time-lapse would have been super cool to watch but I know its probably not ideal to lay in the grass long enough for that. Maybe even doing it around sunset to get the passage of time. I really love the concept I just wish there was slightly more to it in the video. You did an excellent job framing it though and the mirror was a great idea.

[janaechapman]

PERFORMANCE ART PROJECT

I really struggled with what to portray/act out in my performance video. I knew I was drawn to the concept of process the most out of the three choices. Ultimately, I decided to “perform” the act of potting a much overgrown pothos plant cutting that I have been procrastinating on transferring for many months now. The simplicity and mundane-nature of the act of potting a plant was attractive to me. As straightforward as something like that is, I think it’s fitting and somewhat profound for this current time. So many of us have resorted to simple pleasures and hobbies to fill up our time and give us joy, relaxation, and comfort. I know many people have started or returned to gardening or taking care of house plants in particular. It destresses us and gives us something to do during our empty time, but it also provides us with a little bit of hope. During a season that makes people feel so stuck, helpless, and pressured, it is reassuring to watch the faithful process of nature, of a simple plant that grows and continues in its cycle, unhindered by a global pandemic.

[jessicahughesart]

We so often forget that plants are living and breathing just like us. Your work here is very much open for interpretation, I think it shows us that we might need to take some advice from plants. What part of my life have I outgrown? How can I give my roots the chance to spread out and support a healthier plant? I almost think you just shouldn’t have been so transparent about struggling with the prompt and let the work speak for itself. Its beautiful and art with nature always give us so much to analyze, I think you were too hard on yourself in your artist statement, sometimes simplicity is just what you need.

[filtzgood]

Performance Art - Single use plastics

This is my public intervention project part II, and applied as my performance art piece in its disassembly.  This piece has been in my yard for a good minute, and while the interaction with my community was more in seeing the passersby stop and look, mostly with smiles, some with gawking irritation, I was happy with the overall public response.  I had some kids volunteer to talk to me, and that became the highlight of the process for me. As I stated in my artist statement for the installation, this is an important and critical issue for the future of humankind on the planet, and we have to pay attention.  The issue has been casually regarded, and individualizing the issue, giving people the impression that it is enough to recycle, and that will solve the problem is misleading.  The issue is far reaching and all industries are needing to respond to the issue with urgency.  Recycling on an individual effort  will not take care of it, and just that will not slow production or the processes that are in place in manufacturing.  This is an industry issue that can only be powerfully addressed through consumer choices.  Do not support companies with irresponsible policies, and products not easily disassembled for component recycling and reuse.   This is a movement of consumerism and the choices that we make in our purchasing, as much as it is an issue of effort to help an overwhelming issue in its scope.

[jessicahughesart]

I really like that this sculpture was a part of your performance. The message is important and the choice of medium conveyed that as well. I wish I had gotten to hear all of the little snippets, maybe having that in the video would make this more successful. Having your little audience members help you too was a great idea.

[thebrokeblog]

Hypocrisy

For my performance I wanted to focus my concept around Hypocrisy that exist on the social media sites today. Hypocrisy is not something that has existed only since the creation of social media websites.  However in my opinion I feel that websites like Facebook, Instagram, and Snapchat, create and cater to hypocrites. These websites are places were people from different cultures, subcultures, belief groups, ideologies, and walks of life congregate and communicate and I have noticed that a lot of the time people will try to change the way they are viewed or perceived online versus in real life. Often I see people actions in real life conflict and contradict with what they say or post or pretend to be on online.

[jessicahughesart]

This was super shocking and I think really successful. At first, it seemed to move a bit slow and I wished it didn’t seem like just watching you mess around on your phone but it picked up the pace pretty quickly. I don’t know if you had intended to struggle with the bible there but it provided a little break from the seriousness and also really emphasized your point. The ribbon immediately reminded me of those frames you can add to your profile picture on facebook,  I’ve always gotten this “look at me I’m a good person I support this!” vibe from those. I didn’t immediately pick up on everything you touched on but the ones that I did I thought were perfect representations. 

[jessicahughesart]

21:12 wehttaM

In this performance I recite the Bible verse Matthew 21:12 backwards. It’s a commentary on how modern churches do things “backwards”, selling products and services to become rich, closing their doors to those in need during natural disaster and homelessness. The Bible preaches against greed and yet our society has many people becoming rich and famous for preaching the bible, conveniently, they may miss certain sections or preach them anyway unaware of the hypocrisy.  

“Jesus went into the temple of God, and cast out all them that sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew the tables of the moneychangers, and the seats of them that sold doves,

And said unto them, It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer; but ye have made it a den of thieves.”

[jessicahughesart]

The Artist Is Present

This documentary about Marina Abramovic highlights her take on performance art and how she is interested in the vulnerability of being human. The documentary follows Abramovic preparing for her very famous work The Artist is Present, while also giving us an idea of what kind of artist she was before this large installation. She has always been very bold and captures her audience’s attention with often shocking performances. It was impressive to see public response to her work The Artist is Present because performance art is seen as something that maybe people did in the 60′s or is done in small galleries for small groups of people but never on such a large scale like Abramovic. By watching this documentary you can really understand what goes into creating performance art, and it made me realize that those artists are very brave. They want you to form all of these thoughts and opinions about them and their art as a way of interacting with it which is a vulnerable spot to put yourself in the public eye. I love that Abramovic questions why art must always be “beautiful” when its far more interesting to be thought provoking. You can see from her work that the experience of being there and interacting with her performance is a major function of the art she is creating.

[jessicahughesart]

Yoko Ono Grapefruit

Dollar piece

Earth piece #3

Wish piece

[guaminator]

Intervention Art Project: “Solar Powered” Just slightly off the path in a public park I installed these household objects on various trees (No trees were harmed in the making of this piece, objects aren’t actually secured by the screws). Each object is placed at a familiar height and is visible from the path or placed nearby seating areas. I aimed to spark curiosity to anyone who noticed their subtle and out of place presence. Evoke thoughts of how trees have provided us with fuel and energy, a clever take on solar power. Thoughts of that all too familiar panic of needing a way to charge a device but not having access to an outlet at the time. Amenities that we’re used to at home present in nature. I’m inspired by the kind of intervention art that is subtle and makes you double take. Simple, clever and thought provoking for everyone who comes across it. Something you might notice in the corner of your eye that makes you think about why it’s there, maybe interact with it. I wanted it to be a reminder that ultimately technology comes from nature and to not take either for granted. You might not have easy access to one or the other one day.

[jessicahughesart]

I think this project is really well thought out and the execution is even better. It all looks intentional there’s no pieces of tape sticking out or anything, I would really think that this was installed into the tree by someone with some sort of experience. I like how it takes something that is already a part of the landscape but creates curiosity by placing another common object in an uncommon place. Really thought-provoking and I think represents the project really well!

[ty-bjork]

The concept for this series is to represent how we carry the burden of wearing a mask amongst the Corona Virus. There is so much speculation as to if you should or shouldn’t wear a masks and I wanted to embody all of the facets of the contradicting arguments. In this piece I used a six foot 2x4 to represent the social distance length. I used masks of all colors to portray that no one is exempt from wearing masks. I placed all the masks 6 inches apart to represent that every inch matters when social distancing. Additionally, I had my model wear a shirt talking about quarantine, reminding the views that whether you chose to wear a mask or not life still goes on with all its events. Lastly, I used a smoke grenade to represent the virus, that regardless of which side you stand we will all be effected by the Corona Virus. Do You Wear A Mask?

[jessicahughesart]

I get the sense that you wanted to represent both sides of the debate here so I'm curious why "Fear news" is on the side that seems to be in favor of masks. When I initially look at it, it seems to be against masks and I think that's because the message on the mask is directly center, I'm not sure if that was intended. I also think you missed some creative opportunities to have signs hanging instead of just pieces of paper glued to the top. I feel like it would come off more as art with some more attention to the details. The smoke was a cool detail but I’m not sure it ties into the project without reading about what your intention with it was.